David Rubenstein’s Family Office Has Bigger Ambitions

May 31, 2018

Carlyle Group co-founder David Rubenstein’s recently-formed family office has ambitions beyond the scope of a typical family office, according to Bloomberg.

Rubenstein, the former White House staffer who co-founded Carlyle in 1987 and is now worth $2.8 billion, created his family office, Declaration Capital, last year after leaving his post as co-chief executive of Carlyle and becoming its co-executive chairman, the newswire writes. The name of his new firm may have something to do with his collecting tastes. Rubenstein owns a facsimile of the Declaration of Independence — along with an Abraham Lincoln-signed Emancipation Proclamation and a copy of the Magna Carta, Bloomberg writes.

And just as with his collecting, Rubenstein’s goal for Declaration Capital is beyond the scope of most family offices. He has also funded an affiliate to the firm, Declaration Partners, which will target venture, growth and family-owned businesses, a person familiar with the matter who asked to remain anonymous because the plans are private, tells Bloomberg. This unit may eventually try to lure capital outside of Rubenstein’s fortune, according to the news service. Rubenstein hired a former money manager at MSD Partners, Brian Frank, to run Declaration Partners, Bloomberg writes.

Rubenstein’s daughter, Alexa Rachlin, is also on the unit’s staff, according to the news service. Rachlin previously spent four years at Goldman Sachs Group’s private wealth management unit and served as Cambridge Associates’ investment director, according to her LinkedIn profile cited by Bloomberg.

Rubenstein declined comment to the news service through a Carlyle spokesman while Frank didn’t respond to Bloomberg’s requests for comment.